


Dopamine

by wckdflares



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Crush, Fluff and Angst, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I don't really like this but oh well, M/M, Suicide Attempt Mention, i’m tired and don't really know how to tag this, minewt, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-07-12 14:07:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15996776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wckdflares/pseuds/wckdflares
Summary: Newt’s the only one who can make Minho feel that many emotions at once and he doesn't know how to act about it.





	Dopamine

**Author's Note:**

> this is dedicated to my favorite minewt stan esme <3

Minho let the slightest look of panic and uneasiness show on his otherwise confident expression as he glanced at the blond teenage boy standing beside him. 

 

Newt always seemed to be a constant source of comfort even if it was just a simple look and Minho wasn't sure why. Maybe it was a lingering effect of the relief he had felt seeing he wasn't alone waking up lost and confused in that dark horrible elevator ten months ago. 

 

Minho and Newt had come up in the box together, arriving in the Glade, where at the time only a stern teenager named Alby resided. Now as time passed more and more boys suffered the same amnesiac fate, the population of their ”home” only kept growing. 

 

Minho had accepted and had taken somewhat pride in his role in the Glade as a Runner, but he couldn't help but feel anxious before running into the Maze, knowing what terrifying creatures roamed inside. He was glad to have Newt by his side as it had always been since the beginning of his short memory. 

 

”Ready?” Newt’s voice was clear and thick with the peculiar accent that out of the entire Glade he only seemed to have. Some of the other boys occasionally teased him about it, but Minho liked it. He thought it suited Newt pretty well. 

 

”Of course.” Minho forced his voice to be steady and laced with its usual slightly cocky tone. He didn't know exactly why he had decided to keep this cool and almost snarky demeanor but it felt like an essential part to the personality connected to his forgotten past. 

 

Minho trained his stare at the entrance of the Maze and prepared to start the run off with an easy jog after giving Newt a quick pat on the back. He felt a bit embarrassed he had acted on that sudden urge to touch the other boy . 

 

Newt tilted his head, staring at Minho, clearly amused as his lips almost curved into a smile. He took off into the Maze and Minho followed right behind. 

 

It's about four hours later and the boys are just finishing up a small water and snack break. An ”argument” about each other’s running ability and whose is superior had begun not too long ago. 

 

”There’s a lot to take into consideration, like distance, endurance, and speed.” Newt defended. 

 

”Well, how about we just see who can run over there first?” Minho pointed to a nearby dead end, basically ignoring everything Newt just said. 

 

”Fine.” Newt rolled his eyes but the grin on his face showed no real annoyance. Minho was quite surprised and pleased that Newt would agree to this stupid little race, interrupting their important duties of studying the Maze. 

 

Newt was careful and responsible, always thinking before he spoke, something Minho figured he could probably take note of. Everybody in the Glade liked Newt, especially the Greenies. He just had that charming personality and knew exactly the right times to joke and mess around, like right now apparently. 

 

The pair lined up to race and called insults to each other that held no actual malicious intent. Minho counted down from five and sprinted alongside Newt to their finish line. 

 

Minho honestly figured he would be the winner so he was pretty shocked when Newt reached the wall a few seconds before him. 

 

”Ha!” Newt called out loudly at his victory as Minho caught his breath. Newt’s boasting expression changed to a somewhat sheepish embarrassed one as his yell echoed off the surrounding stone walls. Both boys were silent for a moment before Newt let out a high pitched girlish giggle causing Minho to burst into laughter himself. 

 

”Good job.” Minho chuckled, reaching his hand towards Newt’s to shake. Newt’s hand was smooth and soft, only barely beginning to callus. Minho instinctively held on for a minute, squeezing the other boy’s hand, ignoring everything the physical contact made him feel besides the nostalgic familiarity in the back of his head. 

 

—————

 

Minho had woken up in the late hours of the night, judging by the pitch black darkness. The only  
sounds were the constant noise of stone walls grinding together, the occasional Griever screech, and the snores and sighs of dozens of sleeping boys.

 

He’d had that nightmare again. That nightmare where he relived finding Newt unconscious on the maze floor and then struggling to drag him back to the Glade all over again. 

 

It would have been completely different if he had been attacked by a Griever or injured by something else purely accidental, but Newt had intended to hurt himself like that. It shattered Minho in a thousand different ways. He should have known Newt was suffering like that. He should have helped his best friend before Newt thought his only option was to jump off that wall.

 

There was no way Minho could fall back asleep that easily with those sudden thoughts of sadness and guilt running through his mind. He eventually just got out of bed and began to pace around the grassy area near his hammock. 

 

Minho honestly wasn't even surprised when he found himself going over and looking at the blond boy sleeping a few feet away. 

 

Newt had been quite moody all night, complaining of leg pains. Something in Minho just had to check and make sure he was okay, a protective instinct. 

 

At that moment, Newt was perfectly fine, fast asleep and snoring softly. He looked so much younger, so much more peaceful, sleeping than he ever did when he was awake, busy, bossy, and occasionally stressed as the second in command of the Glade. 

 

Minho missed being running partners with Newt more than he could ever imagine. He missed having Newt by his side those long hours of the day. 

 

Even though being a Runner was an incredibly difficult and stressful job, Newt made it bearable. More than bearable, he had made it the highlight of Minho’s strange draining life. 

 

He chuckled to himself thinking about how he’d do anything, no matter how stupid or irresponsible, just to make Newt laugh. Minho did everything in his power just to see that smile of Newt’s, that smile where his eyes sparkled to match his grin. 

 

Minho impulsively reached out to Newt, gently brushing a lock of the boy’s slightly overgrown golden hair out of his face. He let his hand linger for a few seconds, affectionately stroking the side of Newt’s face. 

 

”Do you realize-” 

 

Minho stopped mid whisper and pulled his hand away as Newt suddenly let out a sigh and stirred in his sleep. Minho held his breath in that second, praying he hadn't woken the boy up.

 

Oh God, how could he be so stupid? Minho wasn't even sure what he was going to say if he had the opportunity to finish. 

 

Minho felt his face flush as he waited to see Newt’s brown eyes flutter open with confusion. 

 

They never did. Newt shifted around for a moment, never actually waking up, to Minho’s relief. He didn't hesitate to go back to his own hammock, burning with absolute embarrassment even though he was very sure nobody had been awake to see anything. 

 

Now as he laid in bed, Minho was kept awake by entirely different thoughts revolving around Newt. These were less depressing and saddening, but more confusing. 

 

He definitely ’liked’ Newt in a completely different way from the other boys in the Glade, Minho knew that for sure. Nobody else gave him that calming, fluttering, almost euphoric in a way feeling deep inside him like Newt could. 

 

Even though Minho practically thrived off those emotions, they embarrassed him beyond belief. It felt wrong, almost shameful, for him to have those feelings that definitely were not platonic anymore towards Newt. 

 

He shouldn't be wishing he was sharing a hammock with the other boy and cuddling right now. Minho shouldn't be thinking about how it would feel to kiss Newt right now. 

 

Maybe if they were not constantly focusing on surviving in this horrible life-threatening situation they had been literally sent into, none of these urges and thoughts would be wrong. Well, many things would be a whole lot better if they weren't trapped in a huge maze with literal monsters, to say the least. 

 

Perhaps the most confusing and frustrating part of this whole touchy-feely mess was that Minho had good reason to suspect it wasn't one-sided. 

 

Despite having his ’I’m just joking’ barrier up usually, there would be times where Minho would let all those swirling emotions in his head take over and act on them. 

 

It wouldn't be much, maybe a comment that was just a little too flirty or a touch that lasted a little too long. Every single one of those occasions Newt would react in the same energy, responding with an equally suggestive statement and returning the physical contact. 

 

Then both red-faced boys would just stare at each other with that same flustered look, letting the almost unbearable tension between them grow rather than continuing whatever little thing they had going. They would both just brush it off as nothing when it was far from that. 

 

Minho knew the smartest thing to do would be to simply admit his own feelings and ask Newt outright if it was mutual, but he couldn't do it. The conversation could just have too many possible outcomes and complications that Minho wasn't prepared to handle right now. 

 

Minho eventually drifted off into sleep, dreaming about one boy.

 

One day. One day, Minho and Newt would get the chance to figure this all out. 

 

————

 

”I killed him.”

 

Minho allowed himself to let out a choked sob after he said the words. He let even more salty tears run down his dirty face than before. He allowed himself cry into Newt’s outstretched arms. 

 

It seemed unreal. They had escaped the Maze and were on their way to apparent safety in a helicopter filled with armed soldiers. The only problem was the small number of Minho’s friends that had actually survived and had made it out with him. 

 

Alby was gone. Ben was gone. Zart was gone. Jeff was…

 

Nearly the entire Glade was dead and Minho could not accept that. In all his fantasies about escaping, it was always all of them that made it out. 

 

The last hour had definitely been the most traumatic thing Minho had ever experienced in his short memory. Besides finding out the news that the outside world had been ravaged by disease, disaster, and death, the part that kept replaying in Minho’s head the most was himself throwing that spear straight at Gally’s chest. He’d killed him. 

 

”It’s okay.” Newt wrapped his skinny arms around Minho tightly as he spoke in a soft shaky voice. Minho’s heart broke impossibly more when he had Newt quietly begin to cry himself as the two hugged. 

 

It wasn't the first time Minho had seen Newt in such a devastated state but it was the first time he was just as vulnerable himself. 

 

Minho pulled his head from Newt’s chest to just to look at the boy’s tear-stained face for a moment. He couldn't keep his eyes off the harsh painful looking gash on Newt’s cheek. It would definitely scar but would heal over time. Just like the scars the dozen of teenagers in this helicopter had, visible or not, would have to. 

 

————

 

Things did slowly get better, faster than Minho expected. They’d spent the past four days since leaving the Maze at this facility. They slowly developed a new routine at their temporary new home. Newt shaking Minho awake in the late hours of the night was not in that new routine. 

 

”What do you-” Newt clasped a sweaty hand over Minho’s mouth before he could finish. He pulled it away after a few seconds, bringing a finger to his lips signaling for Minho to keep quiet. 

 

Minho let his curiosity grow as he followed Newt’s instructions, not saying a word as he let the boy lead the way to the very back of the bunk bed filled dorm room. Newt stopped and opened the door they had all discovered on the first night led to nothing but a small old storage room. It was practically empty besides a few boxes. Minho took a seat on one while Newt quietly shut the door behind them before doing the same. 

 

”Why was your hand so sweaty?” Minho stupidity blurted out of nervousness at a lame attempt to joke. 

 

”Shut up.” 

 

”Okay. What the hell are we doing sitting in a closet in the middle of the night?” Minho asked, letting his annoyance seep through. 

 

”I wouldn't call it a closet. It's little too big for-” Newt interrupted his own rambling with a sigh, shaking his head slightly. ”I wanted to talk to you and this is actually a really stupid idea.” 

 

”Newt, you realize you can talk to me anytime?” Minho couldn't help but be amused at how flustered Newt seemed to be getting over nothing. 

 

”Yeah, I know.” Minho caught Newt beginning to blush slightly before the boy turned his head away. ”I wanted to talk to you without the others though.” 

 

Minho and Newt hadn't really been alone together since arriving at the facility, always with the group for meals and tests. 

 

Minho was both relieved and annoyed as that same nervous fluttery feeling returned as he stared at Newt. It was the first time he’d felt it since leaving the Glade and was honestly comforting. 

 

The cut on Newt’s face was already beginning to scab over and heal, the only blemish on his otherwise clean smooth face. His hair was more groomed and Minho couldn't decide if he liked it better now or before back in the Glade. Newt just always looked good to Minho. 

 

”What do you want to talk about? I’m tired.” Minho finally asked after Newt caught him staring. K

 

”Quit complaining, I know you're loving every minute of seeing me right now.” 

 

Minho didn't even make an attempt to argue that because Newt wasn't wrong. He felt his face heat up as the blond just looked at him with that stupid smug grin. What the hell was even going on? This had to be one of Minho’s strange dreams again. 

 

”This is probably the stupidest thing I’ve ever done but oh well.” Newt rolled his eyes seemingly directed himself as he promptly got up and walked right over and sat next to Minho. 

 

Newt almost shyly placed his hand on Minho’s cheek and he stopped breathing. 

 

”Can I-” 

 

Minho simply responded by leaning in and kissing Newt just like he’d wanted to for a long time. 

 

That's when he knew it had to be a dream he’d wake up extremely disappointed by in the morning. 

 

They were both obviously unsure with what they were doing as their lips barely awkwardly brushed and tickled against each other. 

 

Minho pulled away after only a few seconds, feeling both overwhelmed and completely overjoyed. He began to grin just looking at Newt as their pink tinted faces were still inches apart. This was the first time he noticed the very light sprinkling of freckles across the bridge of Newt’s nose. 

 

”Never knew you had freckles,” Minho mumbled on impulse. ”Cute.” 

 

”Neither did I.” Newt hummed happily in response before pulling Minho into a much more confident and intense kiss. 

 

————


End file.
